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 Willow lives with her mom Jodie, dad John and
older sister Aera and enjoys many of the activities other children
do. Her mother Jodie said Willow loves climbing anything she can,
playing soccer and doing tumbling. Willow also enjoys going to
school, spending time with her grandparents and playing games with
her family.
However, activities that involve being in crowded places can cause
Willow great stress. Since Willow was an infant, one of her coping
mechanisms has been pulling out her hair. In recent years, she was
diagnosed with Trichotillomania, which is listed in the Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition as a “hair
pulling disorder currently classified under Obsessive-Compulsive and
Related Disorders.”
Therapies have helped Willow in various areas, but unfortunately,
none have reduced her hair pulling.
Then one day about a year ago the family was at a flea market, which
is one of Willow’s least favorite places. Willow saw a woman and her
dog standing near them and calmly asked if she could pet the dog.
The lady quickly said yes.
Before the Merritt’s knew it, Willow was lying in the Standard
Poodle’s thick fur. Her parents said it was the most relaxed they
had ever seen Willow act in a crowd. Willow stayed that way for
about ten minutes and the owner encouraged her to relax as the rest
of the family enjoyed the flea market stands nearby.
The Merritt’s’ finally fold Willow it was time to let the owner
enjoy the flea market, but Jodie said Willow had a completely
different demeanor after the experience.
Later in the day, the family saw the dog again and the owner told
Willow she could pet the dog some more. When Jodie started talking
to the owner, she found out that the dog, named Truly, was a retired
service dog.
The woman told Jodie she could tell by Truly and Willow’s connection
that there was something special about Willow.
Upon hearing Willow’s story, Truly’s owner said she believed a
service dog could be a huge help to Willow. As the family walked
away, Jodie said she and John both thought the same thing: “this
encounter was not a coincidence.”
The family soon begin researching a way to get a service dog for
Willow. They initially worked with a local non-profit that trains
service dogs and gives them to families at no charge. The family
hoped it would work, but the agency changed their minds towards the
end of the application process.
Jodie said, “We were incredibly disheartened by this news, but later
learned [the non-profit] couldn’t do what we needed [which was] to
work with an organization specializing in psychiatric service dogs.”
Research shows a Psychiatric Service Dog “receives specialized
training in order to perform certain tasks for an individual, the
only difference being that a PSD usually helps those with unseen,
unnoticeable disabilities [such as] anxiety, panic, post-traumatic
stress, [or] depression.” Other types of service dogs “receive
training to help individuals with tasks or activities that their
disability limits or prevents them from doing on their own.”
The Merritt family soon found a psychiatric service dog organization
and then met Aspen, a 13-week-old Sheepdog Poodle mix. Aspen was
bred with the intention of becoming a psychiatric service dog. As
they shared the story with the organization, Jodie said they became
even more confident getting a service dog would be the best move.
However, there are no local non-profit organizations for psychiatric
service dogs. To attain a service dog through this organization, the
total costs for the dog, training, long term support and other
things would be $17,000. Jodie said the average cost of training
alone is $20,000.
When Jodie explained it was something the family would have to save
for or fundraise, the owner ended up giving them a generous
discount.
The Merritt family decided to start a GoFundMe campaign with the
goal of raising $15,000. They shared Willow’s story to help raise
awareness about her Trichotillomania and provide an understanding of
how much Willow would benefit from having a psychiatric service dog.
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Jodie said, “We believe Aspen can help lessen the pressure on
Willow and our entire family as Aspen will provide the Trichotillomania support
she needs.”
By doing so, Jodie said “Willow will gain independence and confidence, reducing
her anxiety and increasing her peace.” She said they “have been praying for
peace and pigtails for five years.”
As her parents, Jodie and John have said, “her peace is so important to us, but
we know how desperately she wants to trade bald spots for pigtails, so we want
that for her, too.”
Once the Merritt family posted Willow’s story on their GoFundMe page, people
quickly responded with generosity. A WAND television news segment helped raise
even more awareness.
By Thanksgiving Day, Jodie said the family hit the $15,000 goal. It was only
eight days after posting the fundraiser on Facebook.
On Saturday, November 26, the family was able to bring Aspen home.
For now, Jodie said Aspen will enjoy the puppy life with the family until she is
old enough for her ten weeks of training. The family will then do a three day
handler’s training with Aspen. Once Aspen comes back home with them, they will
have to return later in the summer for another training session.
Jodie said, “we have a lot of work ahead of us, but we are filled with hope and
encouragement.” The family wants to thank everyone who helped make getting Aspen
possible.
As Aspen gets acclimated to life at the Merritt house, Willow is enjoying
cuddling and playing with the dog.
[Angela Reiners]
Related Links:
Psychiatric Service Dog.
https://www.certapet.com/psychiatric-service-dog/
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